Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next.

Saturday, 26 July 2014

Bodies of dozens of Palestinians were pulled from the ruins of bombed-out homes in Gaza Saturday during a brief Humanitarian truce, taking the death toll of the offensive to nearly 1000.

More than halfway into a 12-hour ceasefire that began early Saturday, medics said 85 bodies had been retrieved from buildings ground into rubble across the Gaza Strip, pushing the death toll to 985 Palestinians killed in the besieged strip to 985.

On the ground in Gaza, ambulances sped along roads to neighborhoods that have been too dangerous to enter for days.

Earlier on Saturday, a 12-hour humanitarian ceasefire came into effect in the Gaza strip.

The Zionist entity and the Palestinian resistance said they would observe the temporary ceasefire, at 0500 GMT, after US Secretary of State John Kerry was unable to reach a lasting truce during talks Friday in Cairo.

In the hours leading up to the pause, however, the violence continued, with Israeli air strikes killing 23 people, among them four children and a paramedic, Gaza medical services said.

An Israeli air strike in southern Gaza killed 16 members of a single family, hours ahead of a 12-hour humanitarian ceasefire, medics said.

The strike slammed into a home in the southern city of Khan Yunis, emergency services spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said, killing 16 members of the Najjar family, including women and children.

The first strike of Saturday killed an on-duty paramedic in Khan Yunis, Qudra added.

The diplomatic push for a lasting truce is to resume from 0900 GMT on Saturday, when the foreign ministers of key players in the conflict are to gather for talks in Paris, including Kerry.

On Friday, the top US diplomat said in Cairo that both Tel Aviv and the resistance "still have some terminology" to agree to on a ceasefire, but added they had "fundamental framework" on a truce.

Under the proposal, once a humanitarian lull takes hold, delegations from the Israeli regime and the resistance would arrive in Cairo -- which has mediated past conflicts between the two sides -- for indirect talks that could lead to a lasting deal.

It isn’t mentioned in the above video, but Martin Van Creveld, the Israeli guest who angrily gets up and stalks out at about eight and a half minutes into the program, made the following comment in 2003: “Most European capitals are targets for our air force … we have the capability to take the world down with us. And I can assure you that that will happen before Israel goes under.”

Van Creveld was basically articulating a doctrine known as the “Samson option,” discussed at length in a 1991 book by journalist Seymour Hersh. It is a strategy or doctrine whose name is taken from the biblical character and which would entail a massive nuclear attack by Israel against “enemy” nations should it ever perceive its existence as a Jewish state threatened.

Van Creveld is a professor of military theory at Israel’s Hebrew University.

“At 19:00 Beit Hanoun Hospital was hit by an Israeli tank shell. Inside the hospital are 61 medical staff, civilians, three patients and two ISM volunteers, Charlie Andreasson and Fred Ekblad, both from Sweden, who are all trapped inside.

Israeli soldiers are close to the hospital. Gunfire can be heard in the area. A thick smoke is rolling into the hospital.

We need you to call your own representatives to demand that they fulfill their obligation to insure that Israel adheres to international law and immediately cease to target medical staff and facilities.

international volunteers, including some from Sweden, the U.S., and the UK, went to Beit Hanoun in North Gaza to accompany ambulances fallowing the targeting of an ambulance in Beit Hanoun this afternoon by Israeli forces. The Israeli attack on the ambulance killed one paramedic and the critical injury of another

The attack on the hospital in Beit Hanoun is the second Israeli attack on Gazan medical facilities and personnel in the last 24 hours. The first resulted in the destruction of Al Durrah Children’s Hospital in Gaza City last night. A two year-old child in the Intensive Care Unit was killed, and 30 others injured.

Due to shelling nearby, Beit Hanoun hospital has evacuated most of its patients to al-Shifa Hospital. Three patients remain in the hospital.

Since Israel began its attack on Gaza, 13 ambulances have been completely destroyed and two paramedics have been killed. Throughout the massacre, medical staff and facilities have been repeatedly targeted.

“Israel’s attacks on Gaza hospitals are ongoing, with those in areas by the separation barrier forced to evacuate their patients, paramedics and other rescue workers are doing what they can under conditions of great risk.” Stated Joe Catron, U.S. International Solidarity Movement activist.

According to the Gazan Ministry of Health, six out of Gaza’s 13 hospitals have already been severely damaged. One, el-Wafa rehabilitation hospital, has been completely destroyed. Two medical clinics have been completely destroyed, seven other clinics have been damaged, 13 medical staff members have been injured, and five have been killed.“

International volunteers from countries including Spain, Sweden, the United states, the United Kingdom, France, New Zealand, Australia, and Venezuela have begun a constant protective presence in various locations at the al-Shifa Hospital.

At 2:30 PM this afternoon, a press conference will be held at al-Shifa regarding the Israeli attacks on the health and emergency sector in Gaza.

According to the Gazan Ministry of Health, six out of Gaza’s 13 hospitals have already been severely damaged. One, el-Wafa rehabilitation hospital, has been completely destroyed. Two medical clinic and 12 ambulances have been completely destroyed, seven other clinics have been damaged, 12 medical staff members have been injured, and four have been killed.

Dr. Medhat Abass, Director General of the Ministry of Health told the International Solidarity Movement that, “People are terrified. No where is safe. The hospitals are not safe. The streets are not safe. Homes are not safe. The children and the wounded are not safe. Wounded people leave the bombed areas in ambulances and the ambulances are targeted and hospitals are targeted. There are no red lines.”

“Israel’s ruthless onslaught against Gaza’s hospitals, clinics, and ambulances has pushed its health care sector, already struggling under siege, to the breaking point. With deaths and injuries, including those from Israeli attacks on medical facilities, rapidly mounting, al-Shifa is a red line the world cannot allow Israel to cross.” Stated Joe Catron, a U.S. ISM activist now in al-Shifa.

“They [the Israeli military] are targeting medical facilities, the wounded, the sick, and our children, all over the Gaza Strip. They want us to know that no where is safe.” Stated Dr. Basman Alashi, the executive director of el-Wafa Rehabilitation Hospital. El-Wafa was repeatedly bombed and shelled by Israeli forces, forcing the evacuation of all patients and staff on the 17th then attacked by the military once again on the 23rd, completely destroying it.

“With so many hospitals already dysfunctional due to attacks by the Israeli Occupational Forces, we are deeply concerned with how to safeguard al-Shifa Hospital. It is already overwhelmed with wounded and dying people. If Israel continues bombing, patients are going to end up on the street, as there will be nowhere else for them to go. If anything happens, let it be known that the world was forewarned and did nothing to stop this.” Stated Rina Andolini, a UK volunteer now in al-Shifa.

Now is not the time to talk about disappointments and the past. It is more important for the Resistance to win in Palestine because its victory is a further step towards undermining the foundations of the other axis that protects Israel. The other axis includes not only the United States and a large part of the West but also a significant number of Arab regimes.

Hezbollah not only supports Hamas, it is willing to do whatever it takes to provide support.

This was the essence of Hezbollah’s Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah’s speech yesterday, on International Quds (Jerusalem) Day. It is important that Hamas seize upon Nasrallah’s words, precisely at this fateful moment because it knows, more than anyone else, that many of the Arab regimes share Israel and its Western allies’ wish to destroy it. They intend to prolong the war to break Hamas’ infrastructure, its rocket capabilities and its communication network, and to kill its leaders. They intend to hem it in after the war, blame it for all the killing and destruction and not provide it with any help. Its adversaries believe that only this will create a popular grudge against against the Resistance group that would undercut its popular support. Hamas therefore can not wait for the salvation to come from outside, from states that brought down their allies in the Muslim Brotherhood.

How will Hamas seize upon Nasrallah’s speech?

Let’s first see what is new about this speech.

First of all, Nasrallah’s words went beyond Lebanon’s borders. He said frankly that Hezbollah supports all the factions of the Resistance without exception. By “without exception” he of course meant Hamas. Hezbollah not only supports Hamas, it is willing to do whatever it takes to provide support. This is a major commitment that Israel should listen to very well because it means a clear willingness to open another front against it, even though everyone is convinced of the futility of doing so now. Opening a front is a decision that will be taken by Hezbollah but in coordination with Syria and Iran. The message is clear.

Nasrallah linked the Israeli war with the larger conspiracy of the other axis in the region:

“The US provides cover for the war... The thrones of some Arab regimes are bound to defend Israel... We are in the most dangerous era since the colonization of Palestine... We are witnessing the systematic destruction and dismantling of states, armies, peoples and societies, etc...”

It was in this sense that Nasrallah said,

“We feel that we are true partners of the Palestinian Resistance and its victory is a victory for all of us.”

The shared destiny in this sense is clear.

The comparison that Nasrallah made between the war on Gaza and the one waged by Israel against Lebanon eight years ago carries a lot of significance and a lot of important and dangerous messages for Hezbollah’s adversaries in and outside Lebanon. Israel’s failure in the past prevented the creation of a new Middle East and the Gaza war today subverts another destructive project. Perhaps Nasrallah was thinking about what some Lebanese politicians and Arab rulers did during the 2006 war when he said:

“I am sure that some Arab rulers are calling Netanyahu and asking him to continue... But the Resistance will impose a resolution on Israel like what happened in July 2006.”

Here too there is a fateful link between the two wars. These allusions are perhaps intentional as the relationship between Hezbollah and the Future Movement is almost at a breaking point, while accusations continue to be invoked against Saudi Arabia and its role in Syria and Iraq.

Israel’s failure in the past prevented the creation of a new Middle East and the Gaza war today subverts another destructive project.

Nasrallah paved the way for Hamas’ return to the Resistance axis. He openly called for “pushing aside differences and discord when it comes to the Palestinian people, Resistance and cause.” He did not deny that there are differences in opinion and political judgement but the most important thing is the victory of the Resistance. It is precisely here that Nasrallah purposefully recalled the role of Syria, Iran and Hezbollah in providing political, financial and military support to the Resistance in Palestine.

This reminder now is very important to rectify the path and bring Hamas back on the right track.

The speech is also important for Nasrallah, Hezbollah and the axis to which it belongs. This is a golden opportunity to redirect the compass. It is a historic moment that must be seized upon to rally the Arab masses who currently sympathize with Gaza and its Resistance. When Hezbollah’s secretary general appears willing to offer direct support to Gaza and its Resistance, when he rises above differences, he sets a stark contrast with the sense of abandonment by their regimes that the Arab people feel. There is a huge difference between a leader who says that your victories are our victories, you are going to win and the spiderweb (Israel) is going to collapse forever, and leaders who look for an excuse to destroy the Palestinian Resistance and provide a political and diplomatic cover for Israel.

At a time when the Arab world is going through a dangerous and bloody sectarian strife, it is important for the Shia leader of the Lebanese Resistance to reassert unity with the Sunni Palestinian Resistance. In its battle against its enemy, the nation must rise above sectarian and confessional sensitivities.

By linking between the destruction of holy shrines by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and others and the possibility of destroying al-Aqsa Mosque, Nasrallah’s message was broader and more comprehensive. It was an attempt to seek Islamic unity and support for the Resistance. In this sense too, there is a connection between the dangerous projects besetting the region and Israel’s war on Gaza.

The last and perhaps most important message addressed to the leaders of the opposing axis in the West and the Arab world confirms that Hezbollah will not leave the Resistance in Palestine alone. Usually, Israel, the West and Arab regimes take Nasrallah’s words seriously. Perhaps today more than ever, they should take them even more seriously. As the region hangs between divisiveness and coming to some sort of understanding, it is important that the axis to which Nasrallah belongs continues to send messages of strength because they serve as a deterrent and pave the way towards honorable settlements when the time for settlements comes.

It was enough to read the comments of thousands of people on social networking sites right after the speech to understand that when Nasrallah talks about Palestine, it becomes stronger and he becomes more eloquent.